


Good Morning

by FyreinFlair



Series: Whatever Our Souls Are Made Of [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-02-18
Packaged: 2019-10-30 17:30:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17832983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FyreinFlair/pseuds/FyreinFlair
Summary: With her husband recently dead and nothing to do on the ship to Kirkwall, Avenline decides its time to tell her story (and secrets) of her soul mark to Hawke.Soulmate Identifying Marks AU, part of the Whatever Our Souls Were Made Of Universe.





	Good Morning

The decision to travel to Kirkwall on a ship was an awful one, to say the least.

 

One week spent on this pile of wood they call a boat and Aveline is ready to jump overboard.

 

That was a joke, of course.

 

Wasn't it?

 

Shaking her head, Aveline steps away from the edge of the boat. Best not to be near the temptation, anyhow.

 

Only a week. It feels like it has been ages since they set out to sea, nibbling on stale bread and half rotten fruit just to keep up the act of living a life. It was nothing new to her, but...

 

She could still see his face. Aching, tainted, the dark sickness streaming through his veins, begging to be killed.

 

And she hadn't even gotten the chance to do it herself. She was too slow, wasn't able to think rationally. 

 

So Hawke had taken it upon herself to drive the blade into his heart.

 

Aveline could feel every inch of that dagger. Every bloody nerve she had was on fire when she thought about it. It should have been her. Why couldn't she have made the decision for herself?

 

It hurts. And it will hurt, for a while at least. Sighing, Aveline turns her head to the quiet mage. They hadn't spoken since the incident, and that was partially Aveline's fault, but she realizes later by the way Hawke has been looking at her that she was also doing it out of respect. 

 

After all, Aveline wasn't the only one who lost someone that day. 

 

So, yes. It still hurts. But that doesn't mean she can't start working on healing the wound.

 

Sitting alone on the edge of the boat, Hawke is consumed with rubbing her right hand over her left wrist, an anxious gesture Aveline knows well. Joining her, she sits cross legged on the edge with the mage, close enough to talk but enough space to breathe.

 

Blinking in surprise, Hawke speaks, "Aveline? What... what's going on?"

 

Aveline stares out at the water, pausing for a moment. "I thought, perhaps it was time to talk about what happened."

 

Hawke looks down at her hands, fiddling with her wrappings again. "Aveline, you know how sorry I am, I should have made sure you were okay, asked you to do it I just panicked and-"

 

"No. I know." Cutting her off, Aveline takes a deep breath and turns to look her in the eyes. "You did what needed to be done. I won't deny that. And I... I can't forgive you yet, but I... I am working on it."

 

Nodding slowly, Hawke pulls her knees up to her chest. "I understand. So... what is it you wanted to talk about then?" Her fingers continue to pick at her wrappings.

 

Aveline pauses, watching her, "Haven't found your bond mate yet have you?"

 

Hawke throws her a look as if to say 'gee, thanks captain obvious'. Chuckling lightly, Aveline continues, "Don't worry, no judgement here. I can just tell by the way you treat your wrappings. I used to pick at them all the time like that, so I can recognize the frustration."

 

Hawke lets go of her arm, she doesn't exactly appreciate being read so easily, especially when it comes to something like this; something she wants to hide. 

 

Mumbling not-quite-under her breath, Hawke replies, "Well at least you don't have to deal with that anymore."

 

The sounds of the water mask the silence, if just for a moment, the salty spray stinging their eyes. 

 

Slowly, without words, Aveline shakes off the golden cuff on her left wrist, unwinding the stained wrappings around her skin.

 

Holding her forearm out so Hawke can see, Aveline speaks without emotion, "Now look who is jumping to conclusions."

 

Aveline's forearm has a marking on it: the phrase 'Good morning'. Hawke looks up in disbelief, "Then... you and Wesley weren't... " she didn't quite know how to phrase it without causing offense. 

 

And causing offense is something Hawke is very good at.

 

Pulling her arm back to examine it herself, Aveline slowly shakes her head. "It's... complicated."

 

Hawke waits for her to continue. 

 

Aveline remains quiet, not quite sure how to start this conversation. 

 

So Hawke waits...

 

Impatient, Hawke decides to break the ice as she stretches her arms above her. 

 

"Well... we have plenty of time to kill. One complicated story sounds better than staring sadly at the waves, don't you think?"

 

Aveline breathes out air through her nose in amusement. "I suppose. It would be nice for you to understand why this whole ordeal is... confusing."

 

Attempting to get more comfortable on the wood, Hawke falls down on her back, then rolls over onto her elbows. Finding no such relief in either position, she sits back up and folds her hands in her lap.

 

"Alright then, hit me."

 

Aveline cocks her head. Rolling her eyes, Hawke replies, "Oh don't give me that look, you know what I mean. Let's hear it."

 

Crossing her arms, Aveline leans against the railing and settles in for story time.

 

"When I was ten years old, I got the mark, like most children do. I was overjoyed, the idea of having a soulmate was so exciting. I remember playing with the other children, reciting our bond marks to each other and pretending we were all madly in love.

 

"As I got older, the charm of having a common phrase as my mark began to lose its fun. Each trivial morning greeting could have been my soulmate for all I know. As a child it's fun to pretend, to get excited every time someone says your fated phrase, but growing into adulthood every interaction started to blend together.

 

"And so I stopped caring. I gave up that spark of hope that used to come every time someone uttered the words 'Good Morning' to me for the first time. Nothing seemed to matter anymore. I threw myself instead into the art of swordplay, the idea of winning a battle as a soldier seemed much more of an obtainable goal than finding true love. 

 

"So I became a soldier. I patrolled cities and directed all of my youthful rage into fighting bandits and wrong-doers. It was satisfying to say the least, if not filling a bit of a self-indulgent fantasy of acting as a hero."

 

Aveline shifts for a moment, looking back over the sea. She closes her eyes, remembering, then looks back at Hawke.

 

"That's when Wesley came along. Strong, handsome, polite to a ridiculous level, he seemed to show up when I least expected it. Back then I had taken to drinking, I would claim I could out drink all of my peers, both male and female-"

 

Hawke interrupts, "And did you?" 

 

Smiling, Aveline nods, "Still can, if I had reason enough. I can hold my liquor. But anyway, that night we had met a particularly difficult group of bandits. Half of them were trained assassins, so it made things a bit more challenging. All the more reason for us to over-celebrate when the commotion was over with at the local tavern, of course. 

 

"So there I was, waking up with a worse hangover than I would ever admit to at the time, and on the way out of my room at the tavern I stumble over a sleeping man in armor. He was lying there, full templar gear and everything, just stretched out in front of the door! It was quite a sight. 

 

"Later he told me that he had waited up most of the night outside the room for me, and didn't realize he had fallen asleep until I tripped over him."

 

Hawke tries to stifle a laugh and fails. Lifting up one eyebrow in question, Aveline waits until Hawke explains herself.

 

Attempting to compose herself, Hawke fights a smile, "So... it seems like you really... fell for each other now didn't you?"

 

Aveline is not amused.

 

Hawke keeps her stupid grin open as wide as possible waiting for validation.

 

None came.

 

"Are you quite finished?" Aveline crosses her arms, doing her best ‘mom’ impression. Giving up, Hawke nods and settles back into the proper listening position.

 

Aveline clears her throat, "Anyway... the moment he realized exactly who had awakened him with a stumble; he stood up as fast as he could, trying to be the picture of a perfect templar. And then, as any polite gentleman would do, he greeted me with a 'Good morning.'

 

"I didn't think anything of it at the moment, but I did mention how charming he was, correct? He was so nervous, it was adorable. He helped me up and asked me to dine with him. Who was I to turn down such a sweet gesture? So that night we talked, and it turned out he had seen me the night before while I was fighting those bandits. He said he heard his bond mark, and was too afraid to talk to me because of... well I told you how much I was drinking right? For a young man that can be quite intimidating.

 

"To be honest, I didn't fully believe him until he showed me his arm, and it read 'Fucking fuck you; you motherfucking blighters!'"

 

Hawke bites her lip, trying to hold in her laughter. Aveline chuckles, "Go ahead, I can never resist laughing at the image of a ten year old Wesley showing that mark to his mother. It's priceless."

 

They pause to laugh for a moment, then she continues, "Once again, I used to have a lot of rage. From that moment on I tried to... restrict my vocabulary. But yes, that was the moment it was clear to the both of us we were meant to be together. We courted for a while, though still being driven in our own personal careers we perhaps took a bit longer to reach the 'marriage' portion of our relationship than most.

 

"Wesley... he came from a more... traditional background than I did. He didn't want to tie our bonds until we were married, and... intimate.

 

"So, we waited. I'm not sure how long it was, but after we were married and we tried to complete the bond..."

 

Aveline suddenly looks guarded, hiding her sadness as she begins rubbing her mark once more. "They both sparked, but while his mark disappeared, mine remained, as you can see."

 

They are quiet for a moment, as Aveline reflects on the memory. "It... it hurt. Emotionally, I mean, we couldn't understand why, and there were no answers anywhere. We went to the circle, the chantry, anywhere we could try to find some reasonable explanation. But none came.

 

"They all had different reasons for turning us away. 'The Maker works in mysterious ways,' 'Perhaps some magic tampered with the bond,' 'It's because he's a templar,' the list went on and on. We refused to believe we weren't meant for each other. There was no mistaking his mark, we both had a perfect recollection of me saying that string of obscenities, and the words on his arm did disappear after all... 

 

"After a while, we decided that whatever had happened was out of our control, and was clouding our happiness. I covered up my mark, and we lived on, acting as if nothing was the matter.

 

"And for a while, everything was alright, or so it seemed. I don't know... On the outside everything felt okay, we loved each other and nothing would change that, but there was always this underlying doubt..."

 

The silence fills the space for a moment, both of them lost in their thoughts.

 

"And now he's gone. And I'm still here, and so is this blasted mark. And Hawke... I'm just so tired. I'm tired of mulling over what this damn mark means. I feel like we spend most of our lives talking about, focusing on something we can't control... and what really is the meaning of this? Who decided that a phrase from a single person is what dictates our lives?

 

"...I know it sounds like blasphemy. Everyone says this is the Maker's gift to us, a gift of happiness... but what if we want to make our own? Who says we have to be bound by this ridiculous bit of magic?"

 

Hawke remains silent. It’s clear Aveline seems to truly be talking to herself, and Hawke understands. Has she not said all of this to herself before? Her mark has always been in the back of her mind, its hidden meaning poking at all of her insecurities. She thought she had it bad... but to have an incomplete bond...? She cannot imagine what Aveline must be feeling.

 

Sighing, Aveline begins to wrap her forearm once more. "I suppose it doesn't really matter now. We can't do much more than go on, can we? Either I'll find someone with a mark to match mine, or I won't. And... that's alright."

 

Aveline raises her arm to grasp Hawke’s shoulder, "You hear me? It's all going to be alright." Hawke looks into her eyes, surprised at the sudden contact.

 

Feeling a tear making its way down her face, Hawke wipes away the droplet. Balling her hands into fists, she grits her teeth, trying to hold back more tears. She hates showing this kind of emotion. She feels like she is stronger than this.

 

"Hawke... it's okay to be upset. I guess that’s really what I wanted to say. I've seen you mulling over your mark like I have, and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I wanted to let you know that you are not alone."

 

Hawke remains still, her breathing uneven. Aveline moves to get up and Hawke follows as she begins to walk away. "Aveline?"

 

She turns to look at her. "Yes?"

 

In one movement she hugs the redhead, letting her tears flow freely. "Thank you."

 

Aveline lightly pats her back. She doesn't completely forgive her, not yet, but she was ready to try.

 

"Anytime, Hawke. I'm here."

 

Smiling, the two of them part.

 

Rubbing her forearm, Hawke isn't quite ready to tell her story yet. 

 

But knowing she has someone to tell it to when the time is right? 

 

It means the world to her.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I've wanted to continue this world for a while now... and writing a multi chapter fic just isn't gonna happen with this one. But I'm gonna write these little ficlets here and now for this series and I hope you can enjoy!! 
> 
> <3
> 
> (thanks to rachelle for being the best beta ever)


End file.
